- Team form: Leverkusen have won 4 of their last 5 matches and Elversberg have won 4 of their last 5. Both teams come into the game in hot form.
- Playing styles: Elversberg are faster and want to play in transition. Leverkusen are a possession-first team.
- Away form: Away from home in all current competitions, Leverkusen have won 4 and lost 2 of their 6 games.
Two teams with contrasting styles do battle
SV Elversberg have won their last 2 games, beating FC Lorient 4-1 in a home friendly before defeating MSV Duisburg 3-1 away from home in the DFB Pokal 2026/2027, while Bayer 04 Leverkusen have won their last 2 following a 1-2 away defeat in a friendly against Nottingham Forest, claiming wins over Newcastle and SV Wehen Wiesbaden.
Elversberg are a young, fast side who Vincent Wagner has set up in a 4-2-3-1 system to get the best out of their wide attacking options. They love to play fast, they are a team who want to turn their opponents over and play in numbers in the wide areas and they do their best damage in transition.
On the other hand, Carles Martínez has Leverkusen playing a much more positional style of soccer. They're a possession-first side, who will look to control the pace and rhythm of the match through their build-up play and structured pressing lines.
The head-to-head record between these two is limited but Leverkusen did win their only previous encounter, beating Elversberg 3-0 at home in the DFB Pokal 2024/2025.
A tempo battle brewing at Ursapharm-Arena
Tactical clash
Elversberg are a fast-paced team and Leverkusen are a controlled possession team. That clash in styles should create a tempo clash, with Elversberg looking to punish turnovers with quick transitions, while Leverkusen will want to control the flow of the game and keep things locked into their passing rhythm.
Odds and tips
- Leverkusen appear to be the more likely winner here but the odds do seem a little skewed, with Die Werkself priced up at 1.56, Elversberg at 5.0 and the draw at 4.4.
- We're getting some pretty big odds on Elversberg to pull off a result here, but we think they could keep things closer than the bookies expect.
- Backing over 2.5 goals at 1.48 and both teams to score at 1.55 looks a good way of getting on board a lively matchup between two teams that will look to exploit each other's weaknesses on Saturday.
Backing the Germans for the win
Elversberg have won 6, drawn 2 and lost 2 of their 10 combined home and away games this season. Leverkusen have won 7, drawn 1 and lost 2 of their 10.
Away from home in all comps, Leverkusen have won 4 and lost 2 of their 6 matches, scoring an average of 3.00 goals and conceding an average of 1.17.
At home in all their competitions this season, Elversberg have won 2 and lost 1, scoring an average of 2.67 and conceding 1.00. Elversberg have won 4 of their last 5 and Leverkusen have won 4 of their last 5, both sides come into the matchup in excellent form.
Patrik Schick has been Leverkusen's biggest threat this term, notching 4 of Die Werkself's 12 goals in their last 5.
